It's the week before Valentine's day and love is in the air. This week for workout Wednesday I am sharing a workout that you can do with the love of your life, your better half or any sucker you can convince to work out with you. hah.

Finding a workout partner can be a great way to stay motivated to exercise. Any partner will do, but when it's your spouse or significant other it makes it easy to encourage each other, cheer each other on and push each other with a little friendly competition. After all, they already live in your house.

For this blog post I recruited my BFF and bootcamp attendee Cathy and her husband Chad. They were the perfect couple to showcase for this Valentine's Day partner workout post, because they just got married in January!

Congratulations to the newlyweds, Chad and Cathy! Aren't they cute? They came over to the #shredshed ready to work out and be my fitness models (sorry, the gig doesn't pay well). I am also secretly thrilled that someone else is in my exercise photos besides me.

This workout is in a circuit style. We are going to perform the assigned reps for each exercise and move to the next exercise without resting. This way we will keep our heart rate up for a cardio and strength workout in one. Once you complete the circuit, rest for one minute between circuits and repeat one to two more times.

We are using an 8 lb medicine ball. This is an affiliate link: That means if you decided to purchase from this link, I make a small percentage of the sale with no additional cost to you. No one is getting rich here, it just helps with the running (pun intended) of this blog. 8 lb medicine ball.

Partner Workout. Save to Pinterest for Later!

LUNGE PASS WITH TWIST

Stand side by side with your partner. Each partner will lunge forward on opposite legs so the forward legs are next to each other (see picture). Twist towards the forward leg and pass the medicine ball to your partner. The other partner accepts the medicine ball then both partners face forward and return to standing.

This time both partners lunge forward using the other leg and twist away from each other. Return to facing forward then back to standing. Repeat on each leg eight times.

LATERAL SQUAT PASS

Face your partner and with your hips pushed back, lower into a squat position. Staying in the low position both partners take a big step out to the side, then bring together both feet and pass the ball. Do four reps on each side before moving on to the next exercise.

SQUAT PRESS AND ROLL

Face your partner. Both partners squat down with a straight back and chest up. While in the low squat position, roll the medicine ball to your partner. The other partner accepts the medicine ball and stands up and presses the ball overhead. Each partner should squat and press 8 times with the medicine ball before moving to the next exercise.

RUSSIAN TWIST

Sit with your back to your partner at a 45 degree angle. Lift your heels off the ground to increase the challenge. Rotate your torso to pass the medicine ball to your partner. The other partner accepts the medicine ball and passes back on the other side. That is one rep. Complete eight reps before moving on to the next exercise. On the next circuit, pass the ball in the other direction.

STRAIGHT ARM PLANK TAP

Face your partner in a straight arm high plank position. Make sure your wrists are directly below your shoulders and your body is in a straight line from your shoulders to your toes. Do not allow your hips to raise or sag. Lift one arm to tap your partner's opposite hand as shown, then do the other side, this is one rep. Tap eight times before moving on to the next exercise.

STRAIGHT ARM SIDE PLANK WITH REACH UNDER

Partners perform a straight arm side plank so they are back to back. Be sure the shoulders are stacked directly over the wrists. With one arm straight in air touch hands in the high position, then reach below to touch hands under the plank. Complete 8 reps and switch sides. (Or change sides on next time through the circuit.)

Do you feel the love? Grab your #swolemate, your #fitfam or your #gymbuddy and use all the hashtags when you do the workout.

In this post you’ll learn how to build an effective strength training for runners program: What exercises to do, how many sets and reps to perform, how much rest to take, and how to combine your strength training with your running plan.

This week on the blog we are talking all about non-scale victories; alternative ways to measure progress in your health and fitness journey. Try these nine fitness tests, note your scores, and retest after several weeks of training. Improvements in your fitness do not always show up on the scale, sometimes they show in your performance.

If you’re a runner who needs to add strength training to your workout plan, I have a ton of exercise ideas you can perform with a heavy-duty Superband long loop resistance band. Take the Superband with you on your next run and knock out some resistance training on the go.

Runners need to pay attention to the middle child of the Glute muscles family, the Gluteus Medius. Try these exercises to strengthen this often neglected muscle, needed to keep the pelvis steady during runs.

Learn all about foam rolling: How to choose the correct foam roller, mobility tests to determine where you need to foam roll, advanced foam rolling techniques that go beyond the basics, learn how long and how often to foam roll for the best running performance and injury-prevention results!

Strength training isn’t cross training, it’s as important to your run training programing as the long run and intervals. Not sure where to start? Incorporate these five strength training moves into your next workout to build the runner-specific strength that will help you improve your run.